State treasurer duties gutted by committee

May 15, 2013

Written by

Scott Bauer,

Associated Press

MADISON — The last meaningful duty of the state treasurer’s office would be eliminated under action taken by the Legislature’s budget committee on Wednesday, a move Treasurer Kurt Schuller called unjustifiable and stupid.

The Republican controlled Joint Finance Committee voted 13-3 vote to transfer the unclaimed property division of the treasurer’s office to the Department of Revenue. The proposal came from Republican Sen. Alberta Darling, the committee co-chair, and was not a part of Gov. Scott Walker’s original budget proposal.

“It was a complete and total blindside,” Schuller said in the hallway after he watched the committee vote to gut his office. The Republican later called it an “incredibly unjustifiable move” and “incredibly stupid.”

“Am I saddened by today’s decision? Absolutely,” he said.

The move would leave Schuller with almost no duties. He said his only job would be serving as chairman of the three-member Board of Commissioner of Public Lands, which manages trust funds built through fees, fines and land sales.

Schuller said the board meets twice a month for 15 minutes on the phone.

Schuller said it makes no sense to remove all duties of the office without also eliminating the position. He campaigned in 2010 on the pledge that he would do away with the office, but that requires the Legislature passing a constitutional amendment in two consecutive sessions.

The Legislature has not shown interest in doing that.

Schuller ripped the committee’s vote saying it would also mean taxpayers would have to foot the bill for the treasurer’s $68,556 annual salary instead of having it paid from revenue generated off the unclaimed property program.

The committee’s action would have to be approved by the full Legislature as well as Walker before it becomes law. Republican Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald’s spokeswoman had no comment on the action. A spokeswoman for Assembly Speaker Robin Vos did not immediately return a message.

Walker’s spokesman didn’t comment directly on the committee’s action.

“Gov. Walker will review the budget in its entirety when it gets to his desk with the focus on the priorities of growing our economy, developing our workforce, transforming education, reforming government, and investing in infrastructure,” his spokesman Tom Evenson said in a statement.

Joint Finance Committee members said they supported the change because the Revenue Department had more resources to connect Wisconsin residents with their unclaimed property. The move would transfer about $4.3 million a year and six positions from the treasurer’s office to Revenue.

“This is nothing against him personally,” Darling said of Schuller, who sat just a few feet away in the hearing room. “It’s an issue of where we can best handle that information and get it out efficiently.”

Other backers of the move noted that the Revenue Department has addresses and social security numbers of taxpayers that could be used to help connect people with their unclaimed property.

“This is more of a system operational change,” said Rep. Dale Kooyenga, R-Brookfield.

But Schuller defended his work returning unclaimed funds. According to a running tally on the treasurer’s website, almost $14 million has been returned so far this year.

Ten Republicans and three Democrats on the budget committee voted for the move. Two Republicans — Sen. Glenn Grothman, of West Bend, and Rep. John Klenke, of Green Bay — voted against it along with Democratic Rep. Jon Richards, of Milwaukee.

Powers of the treasurer’s office have been reduced over the years. Walker, who supported eliminating the position, cut the treasurer’s budget by 35 percent in 2011 and took away its oversight of the state’s college savings program.

Schuller is not seeking re-election because he promised in 2010 he would not run again if he couldn’t eliminate the office.